Caste groups want Tamil Nadu bifurcated

Chennai, Feb 19 (IANS) Two political outfits Tuesday demanded the bifurcation of Tamil Nadu into two smaller states “for effective administration”. N. Sethuraman, founder of the All India Moovendar Munnetra Kazhagam, and A.K. Natarajan, chief of the Vanniyar Peravai, a dissident Vanniya group, said they were launching a “movement” to press for the bifurcation of Tamil Nadu “for effective administrative purposes”.

They proposed dividing the state into north Tamil Nadu and south Tamil Nadu.

The demand comes a few weeks after the PMK, a Vanniya dominated party, said smaller states were needed for equitable development.

The PMK has following in northern districts of Tamil Nadu and is in alliance with the ruling DMK which too has vote bank in north Tamil Nadu.

The northern districts are considered a stronghold of M.K. Stalin, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s younger son, and seen as the future chief minister from the DMK.

The districts in the south are strongholds of the DMK’s opponent, the AIADMK, and of M.K. Azhagiri, Karunanidhi’s elder son, whose supporters too want to see him as a chief minister.